ABCL: Welcome
| 2012 SPRING LEAGUE |
| DIVISION 1 • SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA |
| STANDINGS | LEAGUE | W | L | OVERALL | W | L | T | |||||
| 1 | TEAM VICTORY | 5 | 3 | 1 | ||||||||
| 2 | ABD BULLDOGS | 6 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||
| 3 | ABD MAVERICKS | 1 | 2 | |||||||||
| 4 | ATH GRIZZLIES | 0 | 3 | |||||||||
| 5 | O'KEIKI WARRIORS | |||||||||||
| 6 | SO CAL OUTLAWS | |||||||||||
| 7 | SOUTH BAY ROCKIES | |||||||||||
| 8 | * TEAM TBD | |||||||||||
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| 2012 SPRING LEAGUE |
| DIVISION 2 • SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA |
| STANDINGS | LEAGUE | W | L | OVERALL | W | L | ||||||
| 1 | ABD BULLDOGS RED | |||||||||||
| 2 | ATH BADGERS | |||||||||||
| 3 | IE SURFDOGS | |||||||||||
| 4 | OC BRUINS | |||||||||||
| 5 | PLAY HARD BASEBALL | |||||||||||
| 6 | SAN DIEGO BREAKERS | |||||||||||
| 7 | SBABC | |||||||||||
| 8 | TEAM VICTORY | |||||||||||
Tuesday, October 4
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SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Chris Kohler originally committed to Southern California as a hitter back in January. But this weekend at the Baseball America Scout Ball Tournament in San Bernardino and Upland, Kohler showed why his pitching stock is on the rise.
Kohler, a junior lefthander at Los Osos High in Rancho Cucamonga, has been overpowering for the Red Sox Scout Team this fall. A week after he struck out 13 batters in five innings in a start, Kohler fanned eight in three innings of work against an overmatched Cardinals Blue team on Saturday. His out pitch was a sharp 71-73 mph curveball that he can throw for strikes or use as a chase pitch.
"My curveball was working good. It's usually my strongest pitch," Kohler said. "Usually I start batters off with that pitch, then go to the fastball, then maybe finish with the curve again. I brought the fastball up a little high, but felt good overall. I tried to elevate it on some, because they were chasing it."
Kohler has an easy delivery and plenty of projection in his 6-foot-2, 170-pound frame. He sat around 85-86 mph on Saturday and topped out at 87, but he figures to add significant velocity as he continues to get used to pitching and keeps maturing physically.
Several other underclassmen on the Red Sox team shined Saturday. Switch-hitting middle infielder Elliott Barzilli, another junior, showed smooth actions, good instincts and a strong arm at shortstop, while also hitting hard line drives to right field and left. He has a chance to be one of the top infield prospects in Southern California for the 2013 draft.
Outfielder Corey Dempster, a USC commit like Kohler, showed good bat speed and a solid approach, hitting a three-run, opposite-field homer to right. The ball carried well to that part of Memorial Field in Upland, and sophomore Luke Dykstra also took advantage, hitting a two-run opposite-field shot earlier in the game. Dykstra, the son of former big league all-star Lenny and the younger brother of 2008 second-round pick Cutter, is strong and athletic, and his swing and approach are making great strides. He credited his work with Cutter with helping his offensive game progress.
"(We) go to the batting cages all the time. He's one of the reasons I got so much better this offseason," Dykstra said. "I've tried to get stronger, and I'm seeing the ball way better in the fall. I was sitting on fastball (on the home run), and I just drove it the other way. I've been trying to do that the whole offseason. I changed my swing up, changed my stance. I feel more comfortable at the plate." MORE
Monday, July 4
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By Blaine Clemmens / All Americans Showcase
San Bernardino, Calif. — The final day at the ABCL Top 20 Championships brought some hot weather and some tense, competitive games. Mountain West Baseball and ABD Bulldogs 2012 team advanced to face off in the finals. Ultimately the inaugural ABCL Top 20 Championships was won by ABD, 14-3.
Tanner Rahier, a 2012 shortstop/righthander from Palm Desert (Calif.) High was named tournament MVP and his teammate, 2012 lefthander Jayson Balades from Oxnard (Calif.) High was named Most Valuable Pitcher. Rahier was not only a hitting and fielding star, he also got the win on the mound in the semi-final game.
The championship game ended up being a blow out, with the mercy rule applied in the eighth inning. Rahier had a big game, going 3-for-4 with with two doubles, two runs scored and two RBIs, but it was 2012 second baseman Darian McLemore of Carroll High in Southlake, Texas who ended the game with a home run in the eighth. McLemore, whose father Mark played in the major leagues for 19 years, is a switch-hitting middle infielder with strength at the plate and a chance to hit. MORE
FINAL FOUR
SUN
7/3
GAME #
HOME
VISITORS
LOCATION
GAME 55
3
#3 Mtn West Baseball
1
#7 So Cal Elite
at Arrowhead Credit Union
SEM-FINAL
GAME 56
12 INN
7
#1 ABD Bulldogs
6
# 5 Hawaii Warriors Green
at Arrowhead Credit Union
SEM-FINAL
GAME 57
14
#1 ABD Bulldogs
3
#3 Mtn West Baseball
at Arrowhead Credit Union
CHAMPIONSHP
Sunday, July 3
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By Blaine Clemmens / All Americans Showcase
SAN BERNARDINO—The Final Four of the ABCL Top 20 Championships are set. At 10 a.m. Sunday morning Mountain West Baseball will play SoCal Elite and the following game will be between the ABD Bulldogs 2012 and Hawaii Warriors Green.
Saturday morning's game at Littleton Field was a tight game, eventually won 2-1 by the SoCal Bombers over ABD Bulldogs 2013. Both starting pitchers were very good and both have futures in college baseball. ABD lefthander Chris Kohler (2013, Los Osos HS, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) went eight innings, striking out 11 and gave up only one hit. Unfortunately, he did walk five and hit three batters. Kohler has a classic lefty arm action and projectable body. His fastball was in the 84-87 mph range, with a nice tight 69-71 mph curveball and promising changeup. As a 2013 grad, Kohler looks like a sure bet to be one of the more heavily recruited lefties on the West Coast.
The Bombers starter, righthander Tyler Gatica (2013, Norco, Calif. HS) was matching Kohler pitch for pitch. He got the win, going 6 2/3 innings, giving up three hits, one earned run, five strikeouts, one walk and a hit batter. Gatica was steadily 84-85, touching 86 and he kept the ball down. He has a fair amount of deception because the ABD Bulldogs 2013 were not picking up the ball out of his hand. His breaking ball was decent and he was mixing in a third pitch, which was either a firm change-up or a cutter he was working on. More than anything, Gatica was impressive due to his level of competitiveness and mound presence. MORE
Wednesday, June 15
This summer, All Americans Showcase and Amateur Baseball Club League (ABCL) will begin operations, in association with Baseball America as a sponsor of both groups. Mike Spiers of ABD Academy is directing both groups and has brought in two veterans of the West Coast baseball scene in Andy Rojo and Blaine Clemmens. Rojo formerly coached at Riverside Community College and Long Beach State, and Clemmens coached at the University of San Francisco as well as a two-year run as the Northern California area scout for the Atlanta Braves.
The plan is to run championship-style tournaments in the West, which will be scouted by All Americans Showcase and Baseball America, ensuring that the top players will be seen, evaluated, and written about, with Baseball America gathering information.
Starting in June ABCL will kick off with the California Underclass Championships (June 10-13), followed by Top 20 Championships (June 28-July 3), Underclass Championships (July 16-22), Freshman Championships (Aug. 1-7), the D1 National Championships (Aug. 7-13) and later in the fall at a TBA date, the Fall Championships. Rings will be awarded at the Top 20, Underclass, Freshman, and D1 National Championships. The tournaments will take place in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. MORE
| TOURNAMENT CALENDAR |
| 2012 SCHEDULE |
| HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL CLASSIC by Baseball America | February TBA | at Inland Empire, CA | |
| TOP 20 CHAMPIONSHIPS by Baseball America | June 25 - July 1, 2012 | at Inland Empire, CA | |
| 17U ABCL CHAMPIONSHIPS by Baseball America | June 30 - July 4, 2012 | at Inland Empire, CA | |
| ABCL CHAMPIONSHIPS by Baseball America | July TBA | at Fresno, CA | |
